Eligible Populations
Right now, the state has highlighted two phases of the Texas Population that are eligible to receive available COVID-19 vaccines: Phase 1A and Phase 1B. To learn more about each of the populations, expand the summaries below.
Eligible Population | Phase 1A
Below is a description of the Phase 1A population, as described by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
First Tier
- Paid and unpaid workers in hospital settings working directly with patients wh* are positive or at high risk for COVID-19. Such as but not limited to:
- Physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists and other support staff (custodial staff, etc.)
- Additional clinical staff providing supporting laboratory, pharmacy, diagnostic and/or rehabilitation services
- Others having direct contact with patients or infectious materials
- Long-term care staff working directly with vulnerable residents. Includes:
- Direct care providers at nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and state supported living centers
- Physicians, nurses, personal care assistants, custodial, food service staff
- EMS providers wh* engage in 9-1-1 emergency services like pre-hospital care and transport
- Home health care workers, including hospice care, wh* directly interface with vulnerable and high-risk patients
- Residents of long-term care facilities
Second Tier
- Staff in outpatient care settings wh* interact with symptomatic patients. Such as but not limited to:
- Physicians, nurses, and other support staff (custodial staff, etc.)
- Clinical staff providing diagnostic, laboratory, and/or rehabilitation services * Non 9-1-1 transport for routine care
- Healthcare workers in corrections and detention facilities
- Direct care staff in freestanding emergency medical care facilities and urgent care clinics
- Community pharmacy staff wh* may provide direct services t* clients, including vaccination or testing for individuals wh* may have COVID
- Public health and emergency response staff directly involved in administration of COVID testing and vaccinations
- Last responders wh* provide mortuary or death services t* decedents with COVID-19. Includes:
- Embalmers and funeral home workers wh* have direct contact with decedents * Medical examiners and other medical certifiers wh* have direct contact with decedents
- School nurses wh* provide health care t* students and teachers
Eligible Population | Phase 1B
Below is a description of the Phase 1B population, as described by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
- People 65 years of age and older
- People 16 years of age and older with at least one chronic medical condition that puts them at increased risk for severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19, such as but not limited to:
- Cancer
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies
- Solid organ transplantation
- Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher)
- Pregnancy
- Sickle cell disease
- Type 2 diabetes mellitus
Vaccines + Equity
Statewide Demographic Summaries
Towards the end of January, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) began publishing breakdowns of vaccinations by across different demographics, specifically age, gender, and race/ethnicity. While there’s a lot of unknowns in the data–particularly across entries for “Race/Ethnicity”+“Gender”–and also because we don’t have the population estimates for phases 1A and 1B broken down by race/age/gender, the data presented by DSHS struggles to paint an incomplete picture of the profile of vaccinated individuals. That said, the charts below attempt to breakdown that data with as much clarity as possible across all known and unknown classifcations.
The first chart is broken up into six different panels–one for each classification of a race or ethnicity. Within each of those panels, there’s two sets of five-columned bar charts which represent the reported gender. The dark blue colored bars (facing upwards) represent the female population within each race and ethnicity classification while the gray colored bars (facing downwards) represent the male population within each race and ethnicity classification. Each column within a set of blue or gray colored bars represents a different age group.
Vaccines + Access
Where Accessible Populations Live in Texas
Where Inaccessible Populations Live in Texas
Photography Credit
Photo by Daniel Schludi on Unsplash